The Meaning of Memorial Day

This is one of my all time favorite political cartoons - in fact, I ran it on the blog last year at Memorial Day. While many Americans believe Memorial Day is the gateway to summer, there are a few of us who still remember what Memorial Day really represents. I think this cartoon pretty much hits those sentiments. Lest we forget that freedom is never free.

After spending 6 weeks at a Veterans Affairs Medical Center, I know what Memorial Day means to me. The vet population is amazing. When I reflect back on my rotation experiences, those that stand out the most are from the VA Center. One of my most vivid memories occurred while I was working in their Coumadin clinic. An elderly veteran in a wheel chair came in to have his blood evaluated. He was quite spunky - a real character. But, I saw tears in his eyes when he showed me a picture in his wallet. It was taken at Pearl Harbor on December 6, 1941. It was a picture of his platoon, all smiles, with a sign that had their platoon number on it. As we all know, the next day, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. He was one of the few survivors of his platoon. In his wallet beside this picture was a card issued by the US Government declaring him an official survivor of Pearl Harbor. Chills ran down my spine when I looked from the picture to the survivor card. They still do when I think about this experience.

When I selected this facility as the site for my residency, I caught a lot of resistance from many people. There apparently is this misconception out there that sub-standard doctors, nurses, and pharmacists work at VA Centers. That just simply isn't true. To those who questioned my choice, I say - it is an honor and a pleasure to serve our vets as a pharmacist. :)